Day 24: False Alarm

Matthew 25:6: (KJV) “And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom commeth; go ye out to meet him.”

We were on the aft mess deck, one of the ship’s many dining areas, watching a PlayStation 2 Madden NFL football tournament. Excitement filled the air! The two videogame combatants were the last remaining from a field of sixty-four contestants. Our Morale, Welfare, and Recreation Department sponsors events like these, and they are thoroughly enjoyed by the crew. Without warning, the general quarters alarm sounded on the 1MC, signaling that the ship is in or is about to face imminent danger. The alarm sounds throughout the ship. We are used to alarms on the JFK, even for general quarters. If it’s a training exercise, the welcome words “this is a drill” follow the alarm. We all froze as an uneasy silence filled the air. We listened to hear “this is a drill”—but no words followed the alarm. Because we were in hostile waters, this could mean only one thing: we were being attacked. Turns out, however, that the alarm was inadvertently set off, and after a few frayed minutes we settled down and continued the tournament.

Matthew warns us of a time when an alarm will sound signaling the return of our Lord. We will not have time to man a battle station or wait on a pronouncement that says: “this is a drill.” We will not be able to go back to our normal routine. The end of time will have come. Ask:

Help to live my life, O Lord, faithful to the beliefs I maintain,
So when you do return, I’ll have no regrets or need to search for blame,
From the portals of heaven, I’ll see what belief in you can do,
And confirm what I’ve known all along, every promise you make is true.

Questions to Consider:

• What are you doing to prepare yourself for the return of the Lord?
• What are you doing to prepare others?
• Are these preparations the same? Are they different?

Reflection for the Day:

• Consider the joy of being prepared for Christ’s return. Consider as well the inverse!